For those of you who don't know, I'm now living in Canada and, somewhat shockingly, planning to 'settle' here...at least for a while! Basically, I liked it so much the first time, I decided to come back and, in their stupidity/wisdom (depending on your point of view!), the Canadian authorities chose to look favourably on me and granted me Permanent Residency status. So...for those of you who missed out on my Moose and Maple Syrup blog , which captured my first Canadian adventure, or have simply filed my tales about my previous stay here under 'yet more ramblings about one of her many trips', here's a quick recap before I begin my next 'tome' [Tip: turn your speakers on!]:
So...to begin this tale. It starts in a snowy land far, far away known as England. Chaos had hit the small island nation as it struggled to cope with a few inches of snowfall. Normally sane and rational people were sent into a spin. The phone calls and text messages started at 4:30am (!) and one friend managed to clock up a total of twelve concerned texts from the time I awoke until the time I boarded my plane. I may sound like I'm complaining but I was actually very touched by all the calls, cards, gifts and lovely farewells I received prior to my departure. I feel very lucky to have been able to catch up with so many people over the festive period and, for those of you I didn't manage to see/speak to, I hope we will meet again soon.
Anyway, life seemed to be running at warp speed prior to my departure with so many things to do, places to be and people to see that in some ways to actually have reached 'departure day' in one piece felt like something of an achievement. My dear parents had changed their holiday plans and insisted on taking me to Manchester Airport...complete with snow shovels, flasks of coffee and blankets thrown in the back. Funnily enough, the worst part of the journey was actually getting out of Roundhay! As soon as we were through Leeds and on the motorway, the journey was relatively smooth. We arrived at Manchester Airport in good time. After a wait, I checked in and said a quick prayer of thanks to the luggage gods, who seem to have been on my side rather a lot of late, as I wasn't charged for any of my excess baggage. Who says budget airlines are cheapskates? Praise be to Thomas Cook Airlines!
Manchester Airport was at gridlock with flights cancelled and hardly any staff on duty due to the snow. This was in addition to extra security procedures being in place. However, after saying my farewells to mum and dad, I eventually got through to the departure lounge only to find we were delayed due to the runway closure. After an hour, we were allowed to board. Unfortunately, we then sat there for another three and a half hours. I was lucky on two counts. Firstly, the passengers sitting next to me decided to upgrade thus vacating two seats and, secondly, as I had some company. My former boss from the University of Leeds, Rosemary, and her partner, David, were on the same flight. Rosemary and David spend part of their year in Canada where David's home is located on the shore of Lake Ontario. I was lucky enough to visit them there in 2007 for a glorious summer weekend break.
Eventually, the flight took off and was smooth all the way. I was quite tickled when we landed on a completed snow-covered runway...snow landings are fairly normal in Canada. I was also quite amused when the first thing I saw as I looked out of the plane window was a Tim Hortons' sign. For those of you who don't know, Tim Hortons is a Canadian institution and a source of cheap (note, I do not say, finely-brewed) coffee, disgustingly carb-laden doughnuts and ridiculously long, but rapidly dealt with, queues.I was amazed at how quickly I skipped through immigration (five minutes) but less impressed by the hour-long wait for our baggage, particularly as a friend was waiting for me in the arrivals lounge. Eventually, my rather heavy suitcase arrived and following a spot of paperwork-generation, I was finally allowed through where I was met by Peter. He had kindly ventured out late in the evening to collect me and take me to my temporary abode. My first couple of weeks here were spent staying at my friend, Janet's, place. It was so lovely to be in familiar surroundings. I had house-sat for a month for Janet in 2007. She was away the first week so I'd set myself a mission to try and sort myself out with a job and more permanent place to stay as quickly as possible so that I didn't outstay my welcome.
I'm pleased to say I was lucky on both fronts. I started working just over a week ago and have secured myself full-time teaching work on the Academic English Program at the University of Toronto for this term. This is where I worked previously and it has been really great to return to teach somewhere I know with many familiar faces. 
I moved in to my new apartment the day before I started work. It's located right in the heart of the city in an area known as Old Town. Basically, this is because it's where the city of Toronto first developed. It's not far from where I lived before and is slap bang between the fabulous St Lawrence Market and one of my favourite areas of the city, the Distillery District. The apartment has been newly renovated and I'm so excited by the fact it has a walk-in wardrobe as well as a view of the CN Tower!! I've spent the last couple of weekends on a spending spree as I needed to buy furniture and household 'stuff'. My interior design advisors (i.e. Peter and Janet) have not exactly helped me limit by budget by persuading me that I really should get what I like and not what 'will do'. Nevertheless, despite feeling like I've been hemorrhaging money, I'm very pleased with the result - it's a mix of IKEA and retro (read: second-hand) style. In addition, I now have the biggest bed I've ever slept in. It's so high that even my feet can't touch the ground!!In addition to being busy with job and house-hunting, catching up with friends, moving and starting work, I've also begun studying part-time. I'm continuing to (hopefully) develop my writing skills and am taking another module leading to the Journalism Certificate I started working towards when I was here last. Then, I studied Travel Writing. Now, I'm attempting to learn more about the Fundamentals of Reporting. In essence, this means I have to learn a lot of rules and techniques that a reporter should know, and 'create' news articles. It's challenging and I'm finding the analysis of the Canadian press quite helpful in terms of both my own cultural and language awareness. I can't say I see news reporting as a career option but it's food for thought and an interesting field to learn more about.
So...so far, so good. To be honest, after what was a rather unsettled time last year, in many ways, I'm looking forward to easing in to life here and gradually finding my feet within a stable yet energizing environment. Watch this space!
